reeb
New member
Hi everyone!
It is my 21st birthday this coming July and I am most likely going to be going on an overseas trip with my family in celebration. My birds spend at least 50-75% of their day out of the cage (I have adjusted my university schedule to suit them), and get plenty of attention, scritches and love, not only from me but from my family and boyfriend.
Berry, my cockatiel, is particularly clingy, and often calls for me when I am out of the room, even if she isn't getting direct attention before I leave the room. My mom checks on them regularly when I am at uni and they are usually okay, but nevertheless they do spend most of their day with and around me because I do a lot of my lectures online.
They also spend time in their outdoor cage in the summer during the day when I'm out, which is very entertaining and fun for them. However, I will be going away in the winter months, so they won't be able to spend much, if any, time outside.
I haven't been away for a long period of time in many years, so I'm quite unsure of what the right step is. I have a few options here.
Firstly, our domestic helper Lizzy works 5 days a week, and when we are away she takes care of the dogs and our aviary birds every day, and will happily take care of the indoor birds too. She loves all the animals very much, and has known some of them for years. The indoor birds know her well, but aren't very close with her. Berry has only really bonded to me, my mom and my boyfriend, but Pearl and Opal are very relaxed and will step up for anyone. I know she will take really good care of them, but they won't get much out of the cage time as she can't supervise them the whole day of course.
Secondly, I could ask my boyfriend Stevey to visit them daily, or possibly stay at my house while I am away. He works full time, but will at the very least have the evenings to spend with them after work. He can also spend the weekends with them, and I know he'll be more than willing to because he loves them as if they were his own. He can't keep them at his place as he lives in an apartment (also their cage is HUGE and very difficult to move), so Lizzy will do the food, cleaning, etc, and Stevey can come after work and on the weekends to give them lots of love and attention.
Thirdly, I could look for a bird sitter that can give them daily care and attention. However, I am quite wary of this because I know that a) it is a stranger, and even if I decide to trust him/her my birds may not and b) moving them out of their regular every day environment might cause even more stress than their separation from me.
So, to those with more experience with this, what are your recommendations?
It is my 21st birthday this coming July and I am most likely going to be going on an overseas trip with my family in celebration. My birds spend at least 50-75% of their day out of the cage (I have adjusted my university schedule to suit them), and get plenty of attention, scritches and love, not only from me but from my family and boyfriend.
Berry, my cockatiel, is particularly clingy, and often calls for me when I am out of the room, even if she isn't getting direct attention before I leave the room. My mom checks on them regularly when I am at uni and they are usually okay, but nevertheless they do spend most of their day with and around me because I do a lot of my lectures online.
They also spend time in their outdoor cage in the summer during the day when I'm out, which is very entertaining and fun for them. However, I will be going away in the winter months, so they won't be able to spend much, if any, time outside.
I haven't been away for a long period of time in many years, so I'm quite unsure of what the right step is. I have a few options here.
Firstly, our domestic helper Lizzy works 5 days a week, and when we are away she takes care of the dogs and our aviary birds every day, and will happily take care of the indoor birds too. She loves all the animals very much, and has known some of them for years. The indoor birds know her well, but aren't very close with her. Berry has only really bonded to me, my mom and my boyfriend, but Pearl and Opal are very relaxed and will step up for anyone. I know she will take really good care of them, but they won't get much out of the cage time as she can't supervise them the whole day of course.
Secondly, I could ask my boyfriend Stevey to visit them daily, or possibly stay at my house while I am away. He works full time, but will at the very least have the evenings to spend with them after work. He can also spend the weekends with them, and I know he'll be more than willing to because he loves them as if they were his own. He can't keep them at his place as he lives in an apartment (also their cage is HUGE and very difficult to move), so Lizzy will do the food, cleaning, etc, and Stevey can come after work and on the weekends to give them lots of love and attention.
Thirdly, I could look for a bird sitter that can give them daily care and attention. However, I am quite wary of this because I know that a) it is a stranger, and even if I decide to trust him/her my birds may not and b) moving them out of their regular every day environment might cause even more stress than their separation from me.
So, to those with more experience with this, what are your recommendations?
